Fort Worth daily gazette. (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-05-14
FROM THE WEST.
The Panhandle Filling Up with q
Strong and Sturdy Agricultural
Emigration.
The County of Childress Organized and
Officers EIected-Contest Over tho 4
Couaty Seat Settled. -

In walking through the Pickwieky hotel
a GAZETTE scribe espied the ckeery face
of the genial Captain Thomas West OF
Jacksboro and, after hearty greeting, he
surrendered himself resiguedly to- the
reportorial pump.
Reporter-"How is the wild west,
Captain, and all the good people who live
there?"
Said Captain West-'sIf you are asking
about Jacksboro l cannot give you any
information. l have just returned from
Childress county, in the Panhandle, and
can tell you of that section"
Reporter-"That IS Just what THE
GAZETTE readers want; tell me all about
it."
Said Captain West-"That would take
too long; 1 will tell you this, however:
The Panhandle needs DO more rain at
present. There is no drouth there. The
ground is soaking, the creeks and holes
are full and the grass is abundant. That
country is coming to the front I assure
you. Settling up? Well, l should say
so. 1t is filing up rapidly. The road is
continually lined with wagons. Home
seekers by the hundred are pouring 10
and you meet them at every turn. Good
substantial, healthy looking emigrants
who are coming to stay; just the sort of
people to conquer our wild lands and
make them bloom like gardens. They
are principally what you would call
small tarmers-a<eouple of wagons, three
or four mich cows; chickens, split-bot-
tom chairs and farming utensils, con-
stitute, with an abundance of household
plumber, the bulk of the moveables. If
the present Influx continues, West Texas
I mean the Panhandle portion of it,,
will soon be as populOus as some por-
tions of Middle Texas. The people are
not apprehensive of drouth by any
means; they know the land is good and
they are going to make their homes on
it."
Reporter-''You have been attending
to the organization of Childress county,
have you nOt?"
Said Captain West-'Yes, sir; I have
been to Childress and Donley counties.
The people of the former county have
had little trouble about organizing, and
I was assisting them as their attorney.
Childress has been attached to Donley
for judicial purposes for some time. The
citizens of Childress desired to organize
their own county and made formal ap-
pliCation to the Commissioners court of
Donley. The court granted the petition
snd ordered an election for county Off
GERS and also for the selection of county
seat. There were two locations in the
field for the county seat, q place
called Childress, named for the
county, and smother place called
Henry. Childress secured large majority
of the votes, and when the result was as
Certained the friends of Henry tried to
prevent the organization. We compro-
missed the matter in this way: The court
counted thevotes for the officers and de-
clared them elected and ordered the con-
test for the county seat to be again tried.
They will have another vote on the sub
iect on June II, when the matter will be
definitely settled. 1t was an odd compro-
mise and will appear so to a lawyer, but
it seemed to please everybody and 1 was
satisfied. tell you that is the coming
country" continued Captain. West, as he
bid the reporter goodbye.